Techno123

@gnome12 We went to Norway last July - the scenery was spectacular ❤️

@TLCOhio looking forward to following along. We are joining the Nova next February for a Singapore to Hong Kong cruise but are doing an (almost) 2 week Golden Triangle land tour prior to boarding. Like @Stickman1990 we are also hoping to see the tigers in Ranthambore and we also get to travel on the toy train to Shimla to do a bit of hiking in the foothills of the Himalayas before flying to Singapore. So if either of you have any hints and tips I would love to hear them.

We will be joining the Nova on the 24/02/25 when she goes from Singapore to Hong Kong but have also booked cruise 1 but on the Moon. It's a port to port so our TA has arranged 3 nights in Sydney pre and 2 nights in Auckland post. You still get a day in Hobart on cruise 1.

We went from the Mandarin Oriental - our luggage was loaded onto a truck and we next saw it in the suite 😁

@eric4395 the flight from LHR to Miami is easy and the offer of business class flights is great as we don't usually get that included in the UK. When we went some of the passengers were offered BA and some Virgin and whilst we arrived later than hoped, we still managed to enjoy the evening and the following morning. We stayed at the Mandarin Oriental on Brickell Key - Regent organised.

My concern re flying from Edinburgh to London on the day your flight leaves for Miami, would be if there is bad weather (wind and snow in particular) you may, like us, end up having your domestic leg severely delayed and miss your connecting flight to Miami.

We flew to Miami December 2022 and it was a nightmare! If you are flying to London from Scotland I strongly recommend travelling to London the day before and staying in an airport hotel.
 

We live in North Wales so Manchester is our nearest airport. Regent had a shuttle from Manchester to LHR then either a 9am (ish) BA to Miami or we were offered a later flight with the shuttle on the same day. Having experienced BA losing luggage we flew on the shuttle the day before to get the 9am flight then the weather hit!

Terminal 3 at Manchester was chaos - all the morning flights everywhere from T3 cancelled, planes refreezing as quickly as they were de-iced. Our flight was early afternoon, actually left Man at 6pm and got to the hotel just as Harry Kane kicked the ball over the crossbar 😜.

If we had gone for the same day shuttle we would have missed our flight to Miami.  Oh, and on the way back, we made our LHR -Man flight by the skin of our teeth but the luggage didn't - we saw that a week later!!
 

@the_dylaness I am a pretty decent home cook and found my class Farmstand Fabulous enjoyable rather than challenging. It's similar to the excursions 😜 Everything is pretty much prepped for you with a limited amount of chopping required but you do get some useful hints and tips as you go along and of course, you do cook everything under 'Chef's' direction. I'm not sure I would have spent my own money but as we had OBC I felt it was worth spending some of that. The best bit - you don't have to wash up 😂😂

Just to prove I did the cookery class. Aprons were $30 so, as I have a draw full at home, I passed. Unfortunately, we were going straight to the Sommeliers wine tasting lunch straight after this so I only tasted and sipped rather than polishing it all off 😜

Having been on Regent Explorer in November and Seabourn Ovation in July, I would say neither line is yet up to the standard we experienced pre Covid. Food is not as good - not awful (except the chicken 😂) but not fabulous either and neither is the service - not enough staff and despite working hard not yet providing the intuitive service we have come to expect.

For example - breakfast in La Veranda on several mornings had 2/3 members of staff on each side. When it got busy they were being chased to set tables so guests could be seated which meant tables weren't being cleared or coffee/tea poured.

I am still happy to sail with both lines (though have 2 in the pipe line with Silversea) but I think expectations need to be reined in a little until staff are fully trained.

Hi Bill. I can't download the template so here is our review of suites 932 and 934 on the Explorer. (We were a party of 4)

F1 suites, midship, port, reviewed by Techno, equidistant from forward and aft stairs/elevators

1 bathroom with tub/shower which was sunk into floor so shallow to step in but deeper to step out and separate shower which was a decent size, twin sinks, plenty of storage

no external noise but significant high frequency vibration so noise from rattling

stay again - probably not although you did eventually acclimatise to vibration

Good - most things - suite was spacious, lots of storage, loved bed facing balcony but this meant a bit tight on side by the wall, comfortable reclining chairs on balcony.

bad - similar to same suites on Splendour-  significant high frequency vibration issues whilst docked and underway, closet door had to be jammed to stop it rattling, ceiling tiles rattling had been 'fixed' with a USA today by previous customers 932 (we got Regent to sort it). Worse by door, bathroom and top of bed - less troublesome by balcony. Seemed to come from other side of corridor behind 'staff' doors - noisy, vibrating machinery of some sort.

@MrsWaldo it would be whilst we are onboard. We have some young relatives who currently live in Christchurch. Is it $60 if requested whilst onboard?

Do Silversea allow passengers to invite guests onboard for lunch? If so, what is the procedure to request permission?

Thank you all. I was hoping for a driving net as it keeps him occupied for an hour or so - mind you, it's just over a year to Nova and two to Moon so you never know 😜😂😂

Are there any deck sports (putting/driving net/boules/ table tennis etc) on the Moon and/or Nova to keep one's beloved occupied on sea days?

I would say it is worth trying the wines offered, but if you no likey (😜) don't worry, ask to try a different one. There are always several different bottles of red and white (and rose) open and when you find one you like, they will be happy to get that for you even if not open that particular night.

La Veranda has lots of interesting food on offer (buffet style) my tactic is to try a spoonful of the things that interest me and then go back for more if I enjoy them. I find if I fill my plate it over faces me then I miss out on things I might have enjoyed.

Finally, even on Regent, things aren't always perfect - if something isn't right - please tell them - the staff can't improve things if they don't know. We had a distinct ceiling rattle in our suite  - there was a USA today folded and shoved in the gap (I assume by the previous guests). I spoke to reception and within 20 minutes a lovely maintenance man was there to check it out. Within 40 minutes he had sealed it and put spacers in and I received a phone call next morning to check all was well.

8 hours ago, RetiredandTravel said:

My Heavans!!  Aint no spin class going to work that off.

They were on - but we didn't go as they were late afternoon and you can't possibly exercise on a full stomach 😜😜😂😂.

I did go to the HIIT class in the morning (well once 😜) and we used the gym and walked the deck but it made no difference to the direction the scales took last night, I'm afraid.

Explorer Sunday brunch (only on sea days I believe. (I actually took the photos to persuade my husband to go as he was planning on going to La Veranda 😱)

I still wouldn't say the service is top notch and is definitely not as good as on Navigator in December. Yesterday (Thursday) we sat at a table outside La Veranda and waited 15 minutes to be offered a drink - only 1 sommelier who wasn't exactly rushing! And this morning (Friday) there were two, relatively inexperienced waitresses who were doing a sterling job but were totally rushed off their feet trying to reset tables, clear dishes, serve coffee and water etc (whilst recovering from seasickness after last nights very rocky ride 😜)

Tensions are running high in many parts of the world - we too have had (mainly peaceful) demonstrations in the UK, however, sensible precautions should mean you are able to enjoy your port stops.
 

So wherever you are in the world and whilst off the ship, follow the usual guidance to appear less like tourists (no standing in the middle of the street with a map open or oblivious to the world on your phone), avoid large crowds (not always possible in tourist areas), making yourself as inconspicuous as possible so keeping voices down (you know there are some people you hear before you see 😜), not voicing opinions with regards to the current situation (many people in tourist areas understand English so you are bound to offend someone) and finally avoiding any obvious, external indicators of any faith (as per @bitob)

1 hour ago, flossie009 said:

Are you referring to the guest or the waiter? 😉 😂

Possibly both😜

5 hours ago, Tsunami74 said:

How about the popcorn sundae??  I am usually not a desert eater, but I save room for this.😋

Unless you end up wearing it as happened to @welshfamily when the waiter developed butter fingers😜. I believe she has recovered though and is looking forward to the next attempt.

As favourite city's go - Rome is mine 😁. I love ancient monuments and Rome has loads, plus cathedrals, the Vatican City, the Trevi fountain, Spanish steps, loads of piazzas and it is more compact than Athens so you can also explore on your own.

However, if you book a concierge you get a day in Rome pre cruise so if you have seen the above you could book the Tivoli tour on your own.

Athens also has lots of Ancient monuments and museums for you to explore plus some slightly more modern buildings. The only thing I would say about Athens is it seems a bit more 'run down' as you move away from the centre - but everyone should visit the Acropolis and the Parthenon at least once in their life ( and the view at night is also spectacular 😁)

We sailed in Suite 726 - midship concierge around the Caribbean. No vibration in suite and I usually get travel sick. Bathroom was dated, but suite was fine. Significant vibration in the the aft restaurants at times but you did get used to it 😜.
 

Whilst I enjoyed our time on Navigator, like @Steve Q she definitely wouldn't be our first choice for a future cruise. We have sailed on Voyager too and join Explorer in 10 days so will be able to compare the 3 classes of ship

@PompeySailor have you checked out the sticky at the top of the board? Regent Seven Seas suite guru - @UUNetBill does a sterling job keeping it up to date. Open page one then look for the Navigator - there are lots of reviews of the different suites by deck.

You visited Japan - English is not their first (nor possibly second or third ) language. During lock down, people who work as guides did not have chance to practise their English language skills and Japan has only recently opened so we all need to try to have a little patience (that said from someone who is taking a Far East cruise on Explorer in less than 2 weeks).

With regards to hearing the guides, I don't understand why Regent don't use the vox (or similar) systems. We have used them on river cruises and they are excellent. You don't have to huddle together looking like a tour group 😂